NFL Wants To Remind You That Having People Over To Watch The Super Bowl On A Big Screen Is Copyright Infringement
from the laws-written-by-lobbyists dept
What is it with sports leagues and their desire to limit how their fans can enjoy the game? There's Major League Baseball, who keeps trying to insist that they own the facts related to a game, and no one can use them without paying MLB first. Then, there's the NFL, who freaked out about TiVo and also tried to ban any broadcasters from using "unauthorized" video feeds to show what happens in the stadium (i.e., no sideline cameras any more). They've been particularly fussy about the Super Bowl, however, forcing advertisers to call it "the Big Game" or whatever, claiming excessive control over the trademark (remember, trademarks are really designed to prevent consumer confusion, not to give holders full control over the mark).
The latest situation is perhaps even more bizarre -- but tragically, seems to fall closer to a correct legal reading of a really poorly written law. The NFL apparently nastygrammed a church for planning to host a Super Bowl party. The original complaint was first that the church was charging people, but also that they used the term "Super Bowl" (as if people would somehow believe that the church was associated with the NFL?). After the church agreed to let people in for free and not use the term, the NFL continued to complain, saying that showing the Super Bowl on a screen larger than 55 inches represents copyright infringement. While we, at first, doubted the reality of this, Ben Austro sent in the fact that it is, indeed, spelled out in copyright law that once you get above 55", you may be talking about a "public performance," though, as Ben notes, the wording sounds like it was clearly written by a lobbyist. No matter what the law states, this seems ridiculously short-sighted by the NFL. It's hard to see how they lose out in any meaningful way by not allowing groups to watch the Super Bowl together. Of course, now that this particular quirk of copyright law is getting some attention, how long will it be until the MPAA starts cracking down on those of you with really big screen TVs from showing movies in your home theaters. What was a joke just a few months ago, may become real.
Reader Comments (rss)
(Flattened / Threaded)
sad :(
Next thing you know, even talking about "The Big Game" could result in a lawsuit, because that's copyright infringement.
Or just watching it with some friends/family is a copyright infringement, because you only have a license to watch it by one person.
I understand that companies and individuals want to get paid for their copyright, but this is getting ridiculous. Don't try to assert control over something you simply can't control.
A church that tries to create a community feeling by offering this service should not be illegal.
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of course a church
Is it just me is do these kinds of things tend to be targeted at conservative Christians? I will not get into a debate about "Conservative Right ruining the world and causing children in Cambodia to have potatoes growing out of their heads while giving lots of money to the CEO of Enron" but it does seem like this is not uncommon when a conservative Christian group is involved.
From TFA "It just frustrates me that most of the places where crowds are going to gather to watch this game are going to be places that are filled with alcohol and other things that are inappropriate for children," Newland said. "We tried to provide an alternative to that and were shut down."
Am I the only one who is frustrated by the fact that the NFL is ok with Sports Bars showing the Big Game on the wall using a projector but forbidding a Church from doing the same thing?
The money they make is in advertising and letting people watch it at the church IS NOT going to decrease people who see the advertisements.
This strikes me as not a business decision but rather a decision based on prejudice against Christians. Kind of ironic that the group of people most often assumed to be prejudiced against the world are being prejudiced against.
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The sports bar would have been paying a fee to show it commercially, the church wasn't. A church is a commercial organisation just like a bar and should pay the same way. Just because it is peddling a particular meme rather than booze shouldn't make it immune.
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Makes me want
To set up a lawn chair outside and project the damn game on the side of my house. An unfortunate consequence of this is that anyone driving by will be able to see it, so sorry NFL. The only thing stopping me is that it is expected to be -2 (with wind chill) on Sunday.
Maybe I just won't watch the game at all, then I won't be counted by Nielson either.
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Re: of course a church
Yes! It is just you.. Oooh, us poor christians are being persecuted again. Not that you christians don't deliberately try to impose your own medieval dogma and beliefs upon millions of Americans. And you call it religious freedom. Go ahead, believe in an invisible man in the sky. Why don't you just blame Satan instead of the NFL?
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Pathetic
It is bad enough that it is two wholly unappealing / mediocre teams playing this Sunday...
... but for the NFL to go out of its way to single out a community gathering spot where most of those who would go there to watch the game were probably going to watch Simpsons at home instead....
This is really pathetic!
I only wish that this was a bigger story so that the NFL could be nationally embarassed for this action.
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Give it up, Spartacus
While the NFL's actions are ridiculous, your trying to turn it into some martrydom case against conservative Christians is even more ridiculous. Take it to Rush Limbaugh or Bill O'Reilly, where they're likely to lend credence to such groundless speculation.
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Great way to treat the fans!
They've also shut a church SuperBowl Party down here in Indianapolis because it was copyright infringment.
It is very sad how they treat the fans. I, for one, won't be watching the game now.
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Don't watch their stuff, don't buy their stuff, this goes for NFL, **AA and all other greedy bastards. If more and more people embrace this simple logic it may yield results in long term. People need to break their addiction from media or it will lead to total corporate slavery.
A.
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Superwhat?
Aren't they already making boat loads of money for the advertising spots? Wouldn't they want more people to watch them? Aren't the short changing the advertisers?
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Progressive
Okay, next it will be adding up the inches on all of your TV screens, then they will sue your block, next the city, next the state, iiiiiieeeeeeee, here comes the NFL!! run for your lives they want your women!!
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Wow
Another reason to hate this already overblown sport.
It's sad to see how many people try to 'live' football in America. The sport isn't really entertaining to watch and it's not fun to play (nowhere near as fun as rugby for example). And I'm sure that last statement will bring out at least one typical football fan that seems to hate everything from every other country when they are talking football, even though I'm sure the TV they watch it on was made in China...
But hey, it's "tradition", and that's all this country seems to have to be proud of. Now it's just come down to this corporation (That is what it is, there is no sport anymore) that would rather force people to... what? Buy smaller TVs? Does a projector count since it's not really a TV, but just a means for displaying an image? What is a TV, the receiver or the display or both?
Screw it, think I'll Tivo THE BIG GAME and put it on torrent immediately after it's over. As for now, I'm gunna go stick my finger down my throat while I think about what this country is becoming.
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The Big Game
Well, this is yet another example of The New Way Forward in our country, we soon will be only haves and have nots, all the inbetweeners will be gone.
Personally I have never watched a SuperBowl game and never will. I care nothing about sports of anykind on TV, nor will I go to a stadium and spend exorbinate amounts of money to watch big business in action. I am 61 and have no idea how long there has been a Superbowl, but I have missed them all and do not consider myself hurt in anyway for having done so.
Our country is getting just like the Roman Empire right before its collapse, as long as people can watch sports on tv on the weekend and swill beer or other beverage, no one cares what is happening around them. There really are ways to have a well rounded life without ignoring ones family and spending every waking offtime minute watching sports, hunting or fishing. Nothing is done in moderation any more, it is either wholehog or nothing. I know many will call me names for this post, but I enjoy life to the fullest and it does not include contributing to the decay and decline of this country by idolizing sports and sports so called (celebrities), many of whom are drug ridden addicts and should not be looked up to by anyone, especially our children.
This is just another tactic to control the population and generate more and more money for big business.
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The Big Lame
Screw the NFL. I'm watching Puppy Bowl III.
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Re: The Big Game
I'll sencond that entire comment, except I'm not that age (yet).
Sports are great if you actually play them, you know, for FUN and EXERCISE, but once people start dropping everything for WATCHING sports, such as showing up to work late and ignoring your kids while you try to watch the ever-important pass attempt, it's at that point that the society that participates in such activities has hit a new low.
Lets not even start talking about the riots of citizens that happen after their own team has won the game...
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A fan and still disgusted.
Unlike a lot here I'm a BIG fan of Football. But come on, this is just pure greed and stupidity by the NFL. I guess they will start alienating their fans like others sports and start to watch their viewer base drop! Would serve them right, looks like they've gotten to the point they feel they don't need fans! I mean they DID create football, right? (Sarcasm there)
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2 questoins and 3 comments
q1) If as a the pastor of church I'm not but let's pretend) I start showing football and other sports games on Sunday afternoon/evening then I would seemly fall into the portion of the law which exempts bars and other establishments that regularly show games. So if I hook my projector up each Sunday and show the game in my churches multi purpose room then I can show the super bowl (it is 2 words) on Super bowl Sunday, right?
q2) Can I use the word Superbowl as one word (much of the media does) or is it also copyrighted?
c1) You must have
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Re: Re: The Big Game
Haha... well, you people realize that you don't have to be a family-neglecting, alcoholic, sports fanatic to enjoy watching "the big game", right?
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Justifying their jobs?
Could this be an instance of some employees having to justify their jobs, like politicians, by taking some sort of action(s) to prevent copyright infringement, or at least appear to be battling it? That way those employees and their leadership can show that they're working hard for the company.
The reason I bring up this possibility is that it seems like this happens a lot in business, politics, and elsewhere. People seem to focus on the benefits of one thing, in this case "proving their worth" to the company, and they lose focus of any ramifications it may have.
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Re: 2 questoins and 3 comments
And you are just drunk.
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Where is
Where is one of them LED Finger dudes in boston when you need one to send the NFL....
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Fuck them all. I'd like to see someone try to stop me from showing anything I like to all my friends on my projector. My screen is over 10ft. and I have no plans to stop the parties!
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Stupor Bowl
I do enjoy watching sports, but only casually. Anyone who doesn't enjoy that activity, well, I wish you health and wealth to enjoy other things.
The NFL takes itself far too seriously, and this year I may well forget the whole thing. (The really GOOD footbal games are in the playoffs anyway.)
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Re: off topic reply to Spartcacus
Christians complain of being persecuted although they make up 80% of the population, control the Presidency, (until recently) had both branches of Congress and the Supreme Court - and they have the unmitigated gall to complain about being persecuted.
When leaders make their followers believe they are being treated badly, they are employing one of the oldest tricks in history to keep the sheep in line.
As Hitler's propaganda minister Goebbels said - and proved, people swallow big lies more readily than small ones.
Sorry for going off topic but Spartcacus asked for it.
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What is really the truth
Ok.
the Super Bowl is the property of the NFL.
The NFL has copyright to it.
Copyright law says that they do have the right to control public viewing.
Where this is getting blown out of proportion is with home viewers.
You can have a Super Bowl party at your house and use a project to view it at any size you want, and as long as you do not charge people, you are fine.
Your house is not considered Public viewing.
A church is considered Public, as are bars and clubs, sports houses etc.
In order for a public place to broadcast the Super Bowl, they have to pay a licensing fee to the NFL.
In the grand scheme of things (despite what fans thinks) it is good business for the NFL to enforce this policy across the board.
They are being paid by advertisers not for viewers, but for viewings.
150 people viewing one broadcast counts as one viewer for advertising purposes (since there is no way to determine how many people are actually watching the screen)
If they did not enforce this, then everyone with any place of business and half a brain would have the game on. The NFL would lose a ton of money because viewership would be down (even though the number of viewers would probably be the same)
As an artist, I love copyright law because it protects my work.
I have chosen to enforce my copyright on big companies, but not on little people because my art work does not constitute my livelihood.
If I lived solely off my artwork, I would enforce my copyright to the fullest extend possible.
As for using the term Super Bowl.
Super Bowl is a trade mark of the NFL.
for a long time, everyone and their uncle was using the term in advertising.
There were Super Bowl sales at electronics stores. (now it is "Watch the Big Game on the Big Screen")
Why should anyone get a freebie from the NFL to promote their business?
What are they giving to the NFL?
Newspapers use "Super Bowl" in their prints, but NOT in ads.
My morning paper had a section called "Super Bowl Weekend" but the front page that pointed to it said "Everything you need to know about the Big Game inside"
That is the difference between Trade Mark violation and Trade Mark usage
You can use the term Q-tips to describe cotton swabs, But you can not use the term Q-tips to advertise a product (and you must mention the trade mark owner in you use them in a comparison of items, or when used to described cotton swabs in something like an article.
i.e. "Use a Q-tip to clean your keyboard" - Q-tip is a registered trademark of Johnson and Johnson.....
Just because people view this Church as a little person, does not give them the right to infring on the NFLs copyright.....
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Bad call on this play
I read about this church's situation yesterday and felt the NFL was wrong in there decision. From what I understand the church only wanted to provide a place for families to get together and watch the game without the bar atmosphere. However the NFL feels that this would cause them to lose money or something, so screw it! I don't live in Indianapolis or Chicago so I don't really care much about this game. I really would only be watching for the commercial and possible the half-time show. So I won't watch the "big game" this year because of the NLF lame take on this situation.
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???
You gotta be kidding. So in other words all large screens should not be displaying the Super Bowl. I wonder how advertisers are going to react next year when they realize that less people will be watching because they're not allowed to view it in public.
This is just plain stupid, I think I'm not even going to watch the game this time, I could care less about either teams...I'm going to spend quality time with my family and play with the free software I jsut got off of Giveawayoftheday.com
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Oh really...
Sounds like the NFL is jealous that most people watch the game for the ads and half time show now. For the most part only fans of the two teams care about the game itself.
And frankly unless the NFL is going to subpeona the cable/satellite/tv bills of everyone in world I really don't see how they can tell who is "infringing". And even if they do manage to get that info how can they tell who is using a tv of 55".
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after showing it so a family member, they suggested ratings.
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Re: The Big Game
RE: junglejimo745 - Could not agree with you more. It's sad that sports have been taken over by big business, just like the arts. Both are something that really add to life - something the ancient Greeks understood fully. I guess it is up to people to take it back. Support amateur sports, the level a play might be as great, but it's a lot more pure. People playing for the sheer love of the game. That is what it should be about. You might even think about playing yourself. Just a thought
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Re: The Big Lame
I'm delighted at their stupidly. Perhaps this will be the start of football taking its rightful place, right behind root canals.
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Super Dooper Bowl
Happy to say I won't be watching the superbowl this year.
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Re: by la bête on Feb 2nd, 2007 @ 3:16am
Having worked as a installer and as a tech support rep for cable and sattalite companies i can tell you that actually bars would not be paying any royalty to the NFL.
At most they pay a cable bill. And if its a sports game its going to be on a local network channel anyhow (which they could get for free off the air, although the picture may not be as good.)
The local networks do not get royalty fees from end users. they gain their profits from advertising dollars.
For specialty events such as PPV fights or boxing on HBO a bar simply pays a fee for the service. again no royalty directly paid. It is the network that shows the content that pays the licencing franchise for the privilege to air the shows.
Specialty stations recoup this cost by a subscription based service such as premium movie channels and PPV events.
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I'll make it a point to use "The Big Game" for playoff NHL games, I'll use it all over the web. I'll wait for the C&D letter then post it online.
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Wake UP NFL !!!
So according to this article, every sports bar in the country is violating this 55" rule then right? All the NFL is getting ready to do is shoot themselves in the foot.
The LCD/Plasma makers should be telling the NFL to shut it's pie hole. Hard core football fans only buy the bigger TV's JUST to watch the "Big Game". If they continue to get stupid over this rule, people will just stop buying the larger boxes which will hurt everyone involved.
It's bad enough that when I was younger you could go see a NFL game for $10 per seat.(back in the 80's) Now it's $50 for the noise bleed sections, and now they pull stuff like this? insane.....
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Hmmmm...
I'm not sure how the church could be infringing on copyright when nothing has been shown on the their big screen TV yet. Does the NFL employ precogs that see the future?
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Maybe legal
THe NFL may be on solid legal grounds, but that does not mean they are doing a wise thing. For many years churches wil Sunday evening services had tried to set up competing events. THere has been a recent wave of acquiesence that many people want to watch the game so the churches were using their media equipment to host "Big Game" parties.
The NFL should have done a demographic/economic analysis first -- I believe they would have found a real benefit from the church events. Rather than sending threats, they should allow any church to receive a no-cost license to show NFL games (but not to record, rebroadcast, etc.)
It would be easy enough to verify, just request the organization's tax-exemption number and address, with information about the number of screens, screen size, number of attendees, etc. Pure gold and good will for the NFL.
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Super Blow
The subject says it all...
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Re: of course a church
Man, this has got to be the dumbest thing I've ever read here on Techdirt. This even surpasses dorpus-speak.
Who the fuck cares what religion these people are. I'm certain that when it comes to "protecting their content and trademarks", the NFL thinks we're all heathens and deserve to be burned at the steak until dead for the mere unauthorized utterance of the words "Super" and "Bowl" used together, and the nanosecond glimpse of "the Big Game" on anyone's (larger than 55-inch) TV screen without paying for it first.
Conservative Christians are the *LAST* group in the world that should be complaining about prejudice, seeing as how *anyone*, *anywhere* who doesn't believe exactly what you do is going to be damned to a firey death in Hell for all Eternity.
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Laws gone wild.
Artist, although your comments about protecting your revenue are correct, I don't see how it applies. Yes they get revenue from ads, but you can't tell me that "Big Brother" can tell if 30 families are sitting at home watching versus 30 families at the church watching one feed. If they were Nielson families maybe, but all those numbers you hear about viewerships are made up guesstimates... besides, what difference would a handfull of churches make versuses the entire viewership of the world? It's .000000001% - maybe.
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This is why I do not watch sports.
I am afraid that the big bad NFL and other companies will come and arrest me because I have a 136" projector screen. Why does everyone let them get by with this crap. I thought this was labled as a free country. Our country needs a revolution BADLY!!!
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Who cares
They make enough money, both Church and NFL. They deserve eachother.
P.S - Ill be watching the game on a 55" HD TV - SUCK MY A$$ NFL - Isnt this America?
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It boils down to “Protect the industry” if there is money in suing the fan and limiting the enjoyment in order to make a few more bucks, then you can bet some one is going to do it. The biggest problem is they know even is they loose a few fans there are more than enough to make up for it. And with such a fan base there is lots of opportunity for money making law suits. Now if any one wants to pick up the ball and try to defend the “cause” lets review the subject. The term “Super Bowl” was and is an advertising medium to act as an invitation to watch the game. It was intended to be used to signify the last game of the best teams of the year. So the industry can afford to present his game to the “Public” it features advertisements for products and services who pay for the privilege of presenting their wears, if you will, to the most people they can. To try to reek more profit by limiting the amount of viewers and control the usage of their advertising seems awfully counterproductive to me, but there is short term high profits to be made by doing so. This is their only reason for trying to bottle up the advertisement and terminology used by the NFL , MLB, and any other entity who are willing to prosecute their supporters. Their attitude is the same as that of the RIAA and the MPAA, the “Fan” is nothing more than a peace of trash to be exploited and tossed aside. If you can prove me wrong, please do so!
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The big game
If the NFL gets upset about that, what will they think about this? Recording your own audio? Is that legal?
www.buttercast.com
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Re: Makes me want
That's exactly what I want to do. But we're expected to reach that -2 mark also so it will be too cold. My TV (or projection), my house. If anyone happens to catch a glimpse while I'm enjoying a game that I'm paying my cable company for, then that's not my problem.
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Let's all advertise that we are having large Super
Hey, let all advertise that we are having a Super Bowl Party and inviting all of our friends and we have 70 inch TVs. Let's see how many lawyers the NFL can hire to come after us all. Once we all show up in court then this country will realize how stupid the NFL and other are for forcing us to fit into their stupid little single tv, single viewer Nielsen Ratings counts.
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Why it happened
The real reason this NFL copyright thing happened? Stores were the biggest problem. They used the SuperBowl and NFL logos to advertise products and sales to make a profit. The NFL did not recieve any of that profit. Bars were the same way, they all threw big Superbowl parties. Advertised the party using NFL and SuperBowl logos to make a profit without paying the NFL. That is where the ruling came from. The problem is, Lawyers got involved and took it to the extreme. Non-profit organizations that want to hold something can get around those lawyers by advertising it as a gathering to watch the event for. They can ask for donations to defay the costs for holding the event, but cannot charge admission. Believe it or not, if a church were to charge members to watch a movie (DVD) on the bigscreen, it would be the same copyright infringement.
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Exceptions
Didnt read all the comments so i'm not sure if it has been mentioned, but exceptions are made by the NFL for businesses that rely on showing sporting events on tv year round for revenue. So bars are not targeted.
SI had an article on it yesterday.
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Re: Progressive
THey don't want your women- they want your daughters and first born as a sacrifice to the NFL GOD.
Down through the years I have watched very few Super Bowls.
I have never watched one with New England in it and never will. That my friend is what you call NFL fixing team.
In fact the last Super Bowl I watched was with Paul McCartney at halftime- and it was the only thing entertaining in the whole game anyway.
Solock up the kiddies they are coming.....
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55 inch
If the copyright law has a limit of 55 inches, then anybody that owns a tv large than that is breaking the law. So how they the TV companies sell the TV's knowing they are breaking the law.
They seem to want to have it both ways, push the HD TV, big screen, but also limit the number of people that want to view it.
Once the church decided not to charge, and to take the "super bowl" out, they should be able to allow people to watch it, if they allow people at home to watch it on tv's bigger than 55 inches.
Just another way for them to promote the game, more hype.
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I know!
The NFL figures it can make more out of a person on a single lawuit than they will from the loyalty that person had to their favorite team (and league). So in short the NFL thinks:
$$$ of one lawsuit > $$$ from X years of team loyalty
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Re:
A church is not a commercial orgainization like a bar. Churches are non-profit organizations that typically provides alternatives to bars for events like the Superbowl that famiies can attend.
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Re: 55 inch
The Law is for "out of home" viewing, and like i mentioned has cut out an exception for bars. So 55 inches or bigger is not illegal in either of those two circumstances. Even a church can own as long as it isnt showing the superbowl to a massive audience.
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Re: What is really the truth
A church is considered Public, as are bars and clubs, sports houses etc.
Says who? Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 110 does not define a church, bar or club as public. In fact, there is no mention that because a place is publicly accessible that you are required to obtain approval of the copyright holder?
What are they giving to the NFL?
Um, I don't know, free advertising? Making the event much bigger than it is? Making it the so-called 'premier' sporting event of the year? Spreading buzz about the big game? Creating interest in the big game? Creating goodwill? I could go on and on.
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Re: Why it happened
Don't confuse copyright with trademark. Mike, perhaps it is time for refresher on Patents, Copyrights and Trademark?
The NFL did receive plenty of free advertising when stores used the Super Bowl and NFL logos. This advertising made the game even bigger and more important that it was 10 or so years ago. But like every business that is based on an outdated model, they just want to squeeze every last penny, regardless of the negative impact.
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Big Brother - NWO
The NFL just needs more viewers - more TV's = more ratings. Politicians looking for extra money is also part of this. All those home electronic shops will benefit from folks buying more TV's due to this law. One of many laws that are Stupid, but can be used against you.
Freedom continues to be taken away people -
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Re: Laws gone wild.
Besides, I am pretty sure that when the NFL and the TV networks sell advertising spots and space to companies, they use an estimate of total viewership that includes anyone watching the game, regardless if their viewing is an infringement or not of copyright.
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Alternative...
I wonder how much these sports agency put into the alternative of such restrictions, with that being...NOT WATCHING!
There are dedicated fans of sports (football, baseball, soccer, etc...), but at what point do fans decide that being sued for watching a game on their 60" screen is more than they are willing to tolerate. No one loses in these home get together's to watch these games. With the food, drink, NFL merchandise (jersey's or other team spirit clothing), and so on that is present...these organizations aren't losing anything...it's a win all for most.
It is truly insane the direction that sports is taking...the greed and control is amazing.
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Re: What is really the truth
The statutory enactments contained in the Copyright Act of 1976 wasn't created for such hipocracy and unjust practices. It wasn't developed to prevent consumers to envelop in the envoy of the product. It wasn't until the Record Rental Amendment of 1984 that copyright law took its real turn to help produce profit for big business. Here is the some law about distribution media: If you look I may be in violation because of the audio and video system I have. I have a 10,000 sq ft house why shouldn't I be able to enjoy the luxury of a tv larger than 55" This is outdated and needs to be changed
communication by an establishment of a transmission or retransmission
embodying a performance or display of a nondramatic musical
work intended to be received by the general public, originated by a radio
or television broadcast station licensed as such by the Federal Communications
Commission, or, if an audiovisual transmission, by a cable system
or satellite carrier, if—
(i) in the case of an establishment other than a food service or drinking
establishment, either the establishment in which the communication
occurs has less than 2,000 gross square feet of space (excluding space used
for customer parking and for no other purpose), or the establishment
in which the communication occurs has 2,000 or more gross square feet
of space (excluding space used for customer parking and for no other
purpose) and—
(I) if the performance is by audio means only, the performance is
communicated by means of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers,
of which not more than 4 loudspeakers are located in any 1 room or
adjoining outdoor space; or
(II) if the performance or display is by audiovisual means, any visual
portion of the performance or display is communicated by means
of a total of not more than 4 audiovisual devices, of which not more
than 1 audiovisual device is located in any 1 room, and no such audiovisual
device has a diagonal screen size greater than 55 inches, and any
audio portion of the performance or display is communicated by means
of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers, of which not more than 4
loudspeakers are located in any 1 room or adjoining outdoor space;
(ii) in the case of a food service or drinking establishment, either the
establishment in which the communication occurs has less than 3,750
gross square feet of space (excluding space used for customer parking and
for no other purpose), or the establishment in which the communication
occurs has 3,750 gross square feet of space or more (excluding space
used for customer parking and for no other purpose) and—
(I) if the performance is by audio means only, the performance is
communicated by means of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers,
of which not more than 4 loudspeakers are located in any 1 room or
adjoining outdoor space; or
(II) if the performance or display is by audiovisual means, any
visual portion of the performance or display is communicated by
means of a total of not more than 4 audiovisual devices, of which
not more than 1 audiovisual device is located in any 1 room, and
no such audiovisual device has a diagonal screen size greater than
55 inches, and any audio portion of the performance or display is communicated by means of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers,
of which not more than 4 loudspeakers are located in any 1
room or adjoining outdoor space;
(iii) no direct charge is made to see or hear the transmission or retransmission;
(iv) the transmission or retransmission is not further transmitted beyond
the establishment where it is received; and
(v) the transmission or retransmission is licensed by the copyright
owner of the work so publicly performed or displayed;
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Re: Greedy
If your not making money off it nobody should care.
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NFL Players and Home Theaters
I wonder if the NFL is going to send nasty grams to any of their own players - who are watching the game in the home theater rooms with giant projector screens and hosting parties?
My question is when a church group or the ACLU will sue the league for choosing to go after this church and not players or other establishments violating this agreement.
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What is this "super bowl" of which you speak?
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Hmmm, Use a projector...
There once was a poor tailor in old Chinatown. Every day he would take his meager lunch of rice and sit on his front step so he could smell the scents coming from the popular restaurant next door while he ate. This went on for quite a while, until the restaurant owner found out what he was doing and sent him a bill for 'enjoying his food'. The tailor asked one of his customers, a judge, what he should do. The next day, the tailor went into the restaurant next door carrying his cash box. He went up to the restaurant owner and shook the box loudly, stating "For the scents of your food, I pay you the sound of my money. Mark me 'paid in full'."
If the NFL is going to be piddling about the size of the screen you watch the game on, use a projector! The screen is less than 2 inches square. The projection is only a reflection of the actual display. Can they charge you for standing outside the stadium and listening? No, that is incidental to the game. A reflection on the wall, of any size, should be the same. It is incidental to the actual display... Of course, this is just the sort of technicality that the lawyers drool over.
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Fine, I'll skip going to my friends house to watch the game.
I won't be watching it at home either. I don't think I've ever watched the super bowl sitting at the house by myself, I always watch with friends.
Good news for 'copyright' - bad news for 'advertising'.
OMG HOW STUPID CAN THEY GET!!!! LOL
One can only pray they have lower ratings this year than any other.
Oh well, I can take it or leave it, no big deal at all.
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Clarification
The NFL is not making their money via advertising costs. The NETWORK that is broadcasting the game is making money from the advertising. The NFL has already made its money from the licensing fee that the NETWORK paid to it in order to be able to broadcast the game. (Unless, that is, if the NFL and the NETWORK have signed an agreement to share the advertising revenue.)
Unfortunately, it is nonetheless true that the content of the broadcast belongs to the NFL. And yes, showing the broadcast to a large number of people, even if nothing is charged for it, and even if it is in a private home, is technically a violation of the copyright. At a PUBLIC venue, such as a bar or a church, it's definitely copyright infringement, and isn't covered by "fair use". Fair use is limited to showing something in your home, and to a limited amount of people. (I'm not sure what that limit is. 15 or 20 people, I think.)
It is doubly unfortunate that the NFL has chosen to go after only churches, and not bars, which also routinely have Superbowl parties. It is certainly not good PR, and if the NFL goes too far in this direction, it will only decrease their goodwill in the eye of the public, and could have deeper repercussions as well.
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This is actually a brilliant move by the NFL. Make sure that a church group can't bring in a bunch of people to watch the game. Absolutely brilliant. Why do you ask is that brilliant?
Chances are, those folks who were going to their church to watch the game got pissed off, and promised to not watch the game. Other church goers from around the country probably didn't like the publicity, and will boycott the game. Considering the commercials that will run and the halftime show, you think maybe its not a bad idea to have a bunch of bible thumpers watching the game? Hell, the church probably had some emails already drawn up protesting the ads or the halftime show, all ready for their congregation to send off to the FCC.
I like the NFL's stance. You don't like nipples? Then to hell with you and damm the profits. You want to offer a nice, alcohol free place to watch our game? Screw you. Go to a bar. I bet if the church had advertised that their would be strippers at halftime, the NFL wouldn't have given them a hard time. Football isn't for wimps, and the west wasn't won on a salad.
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Churches
I have finally figured this one out. The NFL is going after the churches because they are fearful that Prince is going to have a wardrobe malfunction at halftime (are we allowed to call it halftime or do they own that one too?) and the NFL does not want to have to deeal with the Moral Majority coming after them telling them that football is bad and that Prince's nipple (pierced or not pierced I wonder?) is an infringement on people's right to watching morally appealing properties on their televisions.
I'm pretty sure I have this thing nailed down!
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Well, my belief's aside - I'm not a 'church goer'.
Actually, I'm more of a bar fly.
It's not the fact it was a Church - doesn't matter, that's completely irrelevant.
Funny how the NFL says a church can't have a showing of the Superbowl.
I IM'ed my boss with the web page - yeah, it's gonna get around now :) Big sports circle here. His comment was, "funny how they can tell a Church not to aire the superbowl, with the NFL's current 'image' of half it's players in Jail, you'd think they would be happy about that."
I like hot chicks, beer, liquor, and seedy bars as much as anyone I know. But this still pisses me off~~
But does it really matter? From an advertiser's point of view - who cares what 'religion' a buyer or potential buyer is. I'm sure many 'Church Goers' drink Budweiser, Drive Chevys, and use Visa...
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Come to think of it - those Churches should go document bars that require a 'cover charge' to get in and watch the game.
and SUE the hell out of the NFL~~
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I've heard this before!
For the record, I am not a football fan. I don't know team names, famous athletes, etc. I think it's all a big waste of time, but so are video games, and I like video games. Anyway, the NFL is way out of line here. I used to live in a place in Washington where the local church buildings would host similar football game viewing parties. I understand drawing the line at charging an entry fee, but banning it altogether for copyright infringement?
Did anyone else read that article about how handing off a digital camera to a friend to take picture for you was violation of the software license embedded inside? I think it was a Techdirt article even. Regardless, do these company people live life at all? Do the people at the camera companies ever stop to think that more-than-likely they have handed cameras off to friends for certain shots? Heck, all we have to do is search their albums for a picture of themselves, and they're busted! Did it ever occur to the NFL that people have been gathering to watch the games on HUGE screens for YEARS now? (I know that just because something has been in practice for a while doesn't necessarily mean it's right, but in this instance, I think it's OK.) I know I'm not a football fan, but isn't that half the fun? How many out there like to watch the game alone?
By the way, I just came from working in a men's dormitory at a university. There is a 65-inch TV in the main lounge where guys would gather to watch games all the time. The NFL really should hear about it... :P
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Well, I know one thing - I have a LOT of friends who are sports fans.
I'm emailing this to everyone of them!
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Re: Laws gone wild.
Bah, Football says: "what difference would a handfull of churches make versuses the entire viewership of the world? It's .000000001% - maybe."
Good job, captain math, .000000001% of the world's population is about 6.5% of a single person.(reply to this comment) (link to this comment)
being safe
My TV might be more than 55 inches. The manufacturer said it was 55 inches but who knows, maybe they rounded down by 1/16 of an inch.
I certainly don't want to do anything illegal so I guess I'll play it safe and just:
NOT WATCH THE GAME.
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OMG
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league's long-standing policy is to ban "mass out-of-home viewing" of the Super Bowl. An exception is made for sports bars and other businesses that show televised sports as a part of their everyday operations. "We have contracts with our (TV) networks to provide free over-the-air television for people at home," Aiello said. "The network economics are based on television ratings and at-home viewing. Out-of-home viewing is not measured by Nielsen." That clenches it. This shows how stupid they really are. They have contracts with networks to provide FREE over-the-air television. So, they're throwing a fit because they won't receive accurate ratings. They're trying to ban the very thing that makes the Super Bowl so wonderful.
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Ridiculous
I will now be using my projector to host a Super Bowl Party for everyone on my street. I'm also going to record the game and play it again right after it's over. I know some people that have to work and would love to watch it later. I will project it at the max size which for my projector is about 6' by 12'. I hope the NFl comes knockingand I really hope they sue I own nothing not even a car. If they go after my paycheck I will just quit I don't really have to work anyway. It just keeps me busy, thank my grandfather for a large trust fund that is not in this country. He is/was Venezulean and all the money remains there. Let's see how they like that, ass hats the lot of them
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Your home theater is safe, no matter how big
From the "definitions" section of 17 USC:
An “establishment” is a store, shop, or any similar place of business open to the general public for the primary purpose of selling goods or services in which the majority of the gross square feet of space that is nonresidential is used for that purpose, and in which nondramatic musical works are performed publicly.
A “food service or drinking establishment” is a restaurant, inn, bar, tavern, or any other similar place of business in which the public or patrons assemble for the primary purpose of being served food or drink, in which the majority of the gross square feet of space that is nonresidential is used for that purpose, and in which nondramatic musical works are performed publicly.
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55"
i say we all go out a buy 56 inch plasma tvs just for the super bowl.....then bring 'em back when were done.
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Pathetic
How much more pathetic do you have to be? Players already make a ridiculous amount of money, the leagues make the same and the sprt itself is out of control!! When will they realize that it is the FANS that make them who they are? What would they do if the fans said "to hell with the SUPER BOWL" and found someting else to do that day? Of course the thought is obsurd and it would never happen. However, just because of the article I know I won't watch it. If even for the fact it is two teams I care anothing about.
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Slaughter the Corporate Pigs
Football isn't for wimps...
Maybe playing football isn't for wimps, but what the hell does that have to do with people watching it on TV screens - of any size??
Is it time for your next joint yet?
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super bowl
is there a surplus of IP attorneys today or what? citing a specific dimension of a TV rather than other aspects of a venue...i.e., charging people etc., is the most absurd control I can remember hearing...so I should be penalized because my thing is too big?...how un-American is that?
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TVs in Cars and Wait till RIAA reads this